Lighting fixture



Dec. 5, 1961 A. J. KURTZON 3,012,135

LIGHTING FIXTURE Filed Jan. 18, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INV EN TOR.

Dec. 5, 1961 A. J. KURTZON 3,012,135

LIGHTING FIXTURE Filed Jan. 18, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent O i 3,012,135 LIGHTING FIXTURE Albert J. Kurtzon, 266 Delta Road, Highland Park, Ill. Filed Jan. 18, 1960, Ser. No. 3,038 8 Claims. (Cl. 240-78) The present invention relates to a recessed light fixture or the like.

The present practices of mounting shades or diffusers on recessed lighting fixtures is to provide a positive fastening means between the lighting fixture and the shade. For example, screws or bolts with decorative nuts are commonly used for attaching the difiuser over the recessed box. These are undesirable with modern lighting fixtures for a number of reasons. In the first place they detract from what is desired for a modern decor-that is, what is often referred to as a clean, uncluttered appearance.

One of the principal objects of my invention is that it includes a manner of affixing the diffuser over the recessed box such that with the diffuser in place the means by which it is aifixed' is not observable. Thus, when an embodiment of my invention is in place and in use, nothing is observable except the clean lines of the diffuser and the ceiling or wall that surrounds it.

A further advantage of my invention is the ease with which the diffuser may be removed for the replacement ofv light bulbs, etc., and thereafter replaced. There is no necessity for unscrewing parts (which may be dropped or lost in the process) and screwing them back in place after the light bulb has been changed or the diffuser washed, etc. Just a moderate pull on the diffuser will disengage it from its mounting. Similarly, the diffuser is replaced merely by pressing it back in position.

Other advantages of my invention are related to the facilitating of the structural work of forming the ceiling or wall panel within which the recessed lighting fixture is mounted. Particularly in new construction, it is the general practice for the concealed lighting fixtures of this general type to be set in place and provision made for the wiring of the fixture before the ceiling or wall in which the fixture is located is formed. That is, after the fixture has been structurally fastened in place the Wall is then placed in front of it. For example, the wall may be formed of lath and plaster as is often the case. At the time that the plastering is done it is most desirable that nothing project beyond the plane that is to form the finished wall surface. While it is the general practice to have the diffusers from the concealed wall fixtures removed at the time that the plastering is 'done, many conventional devices will have projecting ears or other mounting structures that will interfere with the plasterers work, slow up his progress, and perhaps cause him to fail to produce as smooth a wall structure as might otherwise be the case.

With the use of a recessed structure of my invention there is no necessity for anything projecting beyond the opening of the box (which normally will be set at the plane that will be the finished surface). at the time that the wall or ceiling is plastered. The structure'that will be used for the mounting of the diffuser is all within the box where it is out of the way and is not subject to being damaged by a careless workman when the wall or ceiling is formed.

A further problemthat sometimes occurs with conventional structures is that when the box is setin place and the wall or ceiling finished about it, the plane of theopen end of the box does not always coincide with the plane of the finished surface of the wall or ceiling. This may be due to inaccuracies in the mounting of the box or it may be due to inaccuracies in the plastering of the wall. With the use of recessed boxes of conventional type such 3,012,135. Patented Dec. 5, 1961 'ice a misalignment often is readily apparent even when the diffuser has been put in place and results in an unsightly appearance of the finished structure. With the use of my invention the diffuser is always fitted with its base parallel to the finished plane of the ceiling. In the illus trated embodiment it will be seen that the base of the diffuser fits tight against the ceiling even though there may be a misalignment of the finished plane of the ceiling with respect to the plane of the open end of the box.

Further objects and advantages include: the structure is easy and inexpensive to manufacture, yet results in a strong, durable lighting fixture; the box is easy to pack and ship because all of the parts are within the framework of the box (except for the diffuser) so that special padding or protective arrangements are not necessary to prevent damage to the mounting fasteners or the like; no tools are necessary for positioning the diffuser mounting clips and they may be inserted or replaced with the utmost ease; no special manipulations are needed to achieve the alignment of the diffuser with the ceiling (previously discussed) inasmuch as the structure is automatically selfaligning; and the structure of my invention may be utilized both for boxes incorporating fluorescent lights and boxes for mounting incandescent lights.

Additional objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view, partially broken away, of an embodiment of my invention mounted in a ceiling;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical section through the structure of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the open end of the box before mounting;

FIGURES 4, 5 and 6 are partial sections taken along line 4-4 of FIGURE 3 illustrating different positions of the mounting clip in the corner of the box;

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged view of the corner of a difiuser fastened against a ceiling showing the mounting clip for the diffuser; and

FIGURE 8 is a partial section taken at line 8-8 of FIGURE 4. I

In the illustrated embodiment the recessed box generally 10 has four sides 11-14, respectively, one closed end 15, and an open end 16. Sides 11 and 13 and top 15 are formed from a continuous sheet of metal, which sheet also forms side flanges 17. Sides 12 and 14 are secured to flanges 17 as by means of spot welding or the like. Around the open end 16 of the box each of the sides forms a flange 18. Flanges 1-8 define a flush face about the open end 15 of the box. In some embodiments flanges 18 might be utilized for the mounting of a box. However, when the box is inserted in a lath and plaster wall the flanges 18 can serve the function of a guide for the plasterer in the formation of the finished surface of the plaster. I

The preferable structure for mounting thebox in a lath and plaster wall comprises a rectangular angle iron yoke generally 20 which fits about the box. The angles that form' the yoke have a fiat horizontal member 21 and a vertical member 22, Clips 23 spot welded to the angle irons hold the angle irons together to form the yoke. On two of the opposite horizontal members 21 of the yoke 20 tabs24 have been bent out of the plane of the horizontal member'to define slots for receiving'mounting bars 25. On adjacent sides .oftwo opposite vertical members are a pair of plates 26 spot welded to the vertical members 22. Plates 26 are provided withtapped openings to receive screws 27 which project through slots '28 in side members 12 and 14. I

The usual procedurein mounting the box, particularly in new construction, will be to put the box in place and provide wires to it or conduit to it through which wires subsequently may be run, before the plastering is done. The first step in mounting the box will be to insert both of mounting bars 25 under the tabs 24 on opposite sides of yoke 20. The bars 25 are then secured to the joists 31 or the like as by means of screws 32 or nails. Thereafter box may be moved through the yoke and positioned at the desired elevation. Normally this elevation will be such that the lower face of flanges 18 coincide with the plane at which the finished surface of the plaster is to be. Box 10 is fastened in yoke 20 by inserting screws 27 through slots 28 and tightening the screws securely in the threaded openings in plates 26 to clamp the sides 12 and 14 between the head of the screws 27 and the plates 26.

Normally the next step would be to wire the box or to provide a conduit through which wire subsequently may be drawn. The box is provided with suitable knockouts (not shown) through which the electrical connections are made to the box. These knockouts are positioned behind a deflector or shield 34 which is spaced from the top and-the side 11 of the box. Shield 34 is held in place by a pair of screws 35. Mounted'on shield 34 is a socket 36 to receive suitable incandescent bulb 37. Thus, all the wiring for the box may be behind the shield 34 and the shield fastened in place after the wiring has been connected.

After the box has been inserted as described, the next step would be to form the plastered wall or ceiling. This,

of course, would be carried out by the usual lathing and plastering procedures. Upon completion there would be a finished plaster surface 40 surrounding the box. Since the plasterer-would have flanges 18 to serve as a guide, normally finished surface 40 would lie in the same plane as that of the outer face of flanges 18. However, in many installationswhere recessed boxes are utilized, the finished surface 40 of the plaster does not always coincide with the face of the box. This may be due to the necessity for the plasterer to use as a guide some adjacent molding, ground or line that does not lie in exactly the same plane as that of the face of the flanges 18. In any event, it is not uncommon for the finished surface 40 of the plaster to be misaligned with the outer face of the flanges 18, as is illustrated at 41 in FIGURE 2. One of the important features of my invention is that any such mis alignment is completely concealed when the installation is complete. Furthermore, a correction for such misalignment is automatically made by the mounting of the diffuser of my invention.

In each of the four corners of the box 10 I provide a slot 45 which forms away to receive a mounting clip generally 46. While a number of procedures might be used to form this way, -I prefer to do it by bending the ends of sides 12 and 14 a short distance but of the planes 7 of the sides so as to form a tab which defines the inner wall 47 of the slot as illustrated in FIGURE 8. The outer wall of the slot is formed by flanges 17 which overlap the sides 12 and 14 at these corners. At one of the other two sides of the slot 45 the wall is formed by the bent portion of box sides 12 and 14 and the opposite side wall of slots 45 is formed by the box walls 11 and 13. Preferably, for reasons that will hereinafter be apparent, this structure that forms slots 45 terminates a short distance 'from the open end of the box as defined by flanges 18.

The clips 46 are formed of spring wire, preferably cadmium plated, the-thickness of'which is just slightly smaller than the narrowest dimension of slots 45. Each of the 'clips has an elongated base portion-48, an armportion 49 extending angularly therefrom, and a finger portion 50. Both of'finger portions 50 and base portion 46 extend substantially in the same direction from arm portion 49. Base portion 48 base plurality of bent sections, two being illustrated in the described embodiments. Each of these bent sections 51 and 52 lies in a common plane and give the base portion 48 an unrestrained'width slightly in excess of the width ofthe largest dimension of slot 45 with the spring action of the wire permitting the clips to be moved into and out of the slots. Of course, when the clips are in slots 45 the width of the clips as defined by bent sections 51 and 52 corresponds to major width of the slot. Thus, the clips 46 are not rotatable in slots 45 and are frictionally engaged in the slots by the contact of base portion 48 with the sides of the slot.

Arms 49 extend from 'base portion 48 at an angle such that the arms are approximately from thetwo adjacent sides of the box at the corner in which the clip is inserted. Thus, for example, the clip 46- in the lower left hand corner of FIGURE 3 is approximately 135 from both sides 11 and 12. The terms approximately and about are used with reference to this angle of 135 since substantial variation is possible without departing from the concept of my invention. Depending upon the positioning of the narrow and wide widths of slots 45 in each of the four corners, the exact relationship of the position of the arms 49 to the position of the narrow and wide widths may not be identical. In the illustrated em bodirnent two of the clips are of the opposite handf with respect to the remaining two clips. Thus, referring to FIGURE 3, the two clips at the top of that figure are identical and are of one hand while the two bottom clips are identical and are of the opposite hand. The important thing is that the arms should extend out in a position to cause the fingers to most effectively engage the deflector as hereinafter described. With a rectangular diffuser, as illustrated, this is best done by having the clips extend diagonally into the four corners of the diffuser.

The clips 46 are insertable into slots 45 in two alternate positions. One of these positions is illustrated by the position of three of the clips in FIGURE 3 and the position of the clip in FIGURE 6. The alternate position is illlustrated by the position of the upper left hand clip 46 in FIGURE 3 and by the position of clip 46 in FIGURE 4. To change from one position to the other, for. example starting with the position illustrated in FIG- URE 4, theclip is withdrawn as illustrated in FIGURE 5. Thereafter the clip is rotated and reinserted in slot 45 as illustrated in FIGURE 6. This has a very important advantage. During shipping and initial installation of the box, the clips may be packaged in a separate envelope and inserted into the box after the box has been fully installed and the finished surface 40 completed thereabout. Alternatively, the clips 46 may be positioned as illustrated in FIGURE 4 and in the upper left hand corner of FIGURE 3 during packing, shipping, and initial installation. In either event the clips are entirely out of the way during the packing and shipping operation. They do not need special packing in order toprotect them during shipping. Furthermore, and perhaps more important, is that the clips are not in the way of the plasterer during the forming of ceiling40. He may use all of flanges 18 as guides for his plastering without having the problem of dodging around obstructions. Since the clips are out of the way they will not be damaged by a careless plasterer who may be annoyed by their interfering with his work. After the job has been completed and one is ready to place the diffuser on the box, the clips then may be inserted into slots 45 in the proper position for holding the diffuser.

7 It will be seen from the drawings that the four fingers 50 of the clips 46 define a rectangular figure outside the open end 16 of the box. The diffuser generally 55 has four flanges 56 which define a corresponding rectangular figure; Preferably, the rectangle formed by flanges 56 is 56 bend slightly inwardly with respect to a plane vertical or at right angles to. the finished face 40 of the plaster, as illustrated in FIGURE 7. This provides a' better engageznent between the clips 46 and the diffuser 45.

Each of'the clips 46 will extend into acorner of diffuser 55. 'The line of arms 49 will be about'midway between the two flanges 56 that form the corner of the diffuser. Thus, the clips are all but concealed from view when the diffuser is in place. Normally the diffuser 55 will be somewhat opaque and in that event it is nearly impossible to see the clips even when one is looking for ,them, or even to detect any shadow caused thereby when one is not aware of their presence. Any effect they may have on the finished appearance is so negligible that it will not ordinarily be noticed.

I prefer to make the diffusers 55 of plastic although this is not necessary. My invention can be used with other forms of diffusers. For example, it might be used with a ditfuser which instead of having a closed bottom 57 between flanges 56 as in the illustrated embodiment had an open metalwork design or the like as is often used on diffusers for recessed light fixtures.

, Another important advantage of my invention is th fact that any misalignment between the face of the box as defined by flanges 18 and the finished face of the plaster 40 will be concealed when the diffuser is in place. Furthermore, the mounting clips 46 automatically compensate for any such misalignment. For example, if the box. and the finished face of the plaster are misaligned as illustrated at 41 in FIGURE 2, .when each ofthe clips are pressed into place in slots 45 the fingers 50 will be automatically aligned with the finished face 4tlof the plaster.

' When the clips 46 are pushed'into place in slots 45 the ends of the fingers will contact the finished face 40 to limit the extent to which the clips can be pushed-into the slot. Each of the clips will be aligned not with the box but rather with the finished face of the plaster surface. Whenthe diffuser 55 is pressed into place over clips 46 with the fingers 50 frictionally engaging the flanges 56 of the diffuser, the difluser will assume the alignment of the fingers which has previously been set by the finished face of the plaster 40. Thus, the ends of flange 56 of the diffuser will always be aligned with the finished face 40 of the plaster.

The foregoing description of a specific embodiment is for the purpose of complying with 35 U.S.C. 112 and should not be construed as imposing unnecessary limitations on the appended claims inasmuch as modifications and-variations thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing description. For example, insome embodiments flanges 18 may be eliminated. In such a case it may be desired to furnish the ends of the sides about the internal box opening with a finished edge.

Where the box is to be mounted in a surface formed of a plurality of tiles, as for example ceiling tiles, the rectangle defined by flanges 56 of diffuser 50 would correspond to the size and shape of one or more tiles. The height of flanges 56 would be made of a size to correspond to the thickness of the tile. In such a case the box would be mounted with the flanges 18 aligned with the surface on while the tiles are mounted (i.e. the outer face of flanges 18 aligned with the rear of the ceiling tiles). Thus, the dilfuser 55 would have the appearance of fitting right into the tile surface. The bottom 57 of the diflfuser 55 in such an instance undoubtedly would preferably be formed of a shape to correspond to the shape of the outer face of the ceiling tiles. The particular shape of bottom 57 could be variously designed (e.g. circles, squares, etc.) without departing from my invention. In an emergency less than four of the clips would be used to hold the diffuser in place. I

In the foregoing description certain procedures with respect to installation, plastering and Wiring have been described. It should be remembered that these are for the purpose of illustration only. In actual practice the procedures will depend on the preferences of the installer as well as the requirements of building codes,

electrical codes, etc. For example, with reference to FIGURE 7, it may be that in some instances one may use the lower edge of vertical members 22 as the ground for the plastering. In such a case the yoke 20 will be installed before the lathing and plastering are carried out. Wires may be run to a junction box (not shown) attached to a joist 31 adjacent to the yoke. After the plastering is completed, a length of flexible armoured cable (BX or Greenfield) is run from the junction box to the box 10 and the latter inserted into and fastened to yoke 20 by screws 27.

I claim: v

l. A recessed light fixture for mounting in a ceiling or the like, said fixture comprising: a box with an open end and having means to mount the box with the open end substantially flush with the ceiling; a plurality of spring clips each having an extending arm; means within said box to mount the clips on the box with the arm of each clip extending outwardly over the ceiling, said clips being positioned to define a geometric figure about said open end; and a diffuser having a closed end with a peripheral flange thereabout, said flange fitting about and engaging each of said clips to hold said diffuser against the ceiling about the open end of the box.

2. A recessed light fixture for mountingin a ceiling or the like, said fixture comprising: -a box with an open end and having means to mount the box with the open end substantially flush with the ceiling; a plurality of spring clips each having an extending arm with a finger on the end of the arm and angularly positioned with respect to the arm; means within-said box to mount the clips on the box with the arm of each clip extending outwardly over the ceiling with'the finger projecting generally normal to the ceiling, said clips being positioned to define a geometric figure about said open end; and a diffuser having a closed end with peripheral flange thereabout, said flange being generally parallel to said fingers and frictionally engaging each of said clips to hold said diffuser against the ceiling about the open end of the box.

3. A recessed light fixture for mounting in a ceiling or the like, said fixture comprising: a box with an open end and having means to mount the box with the open end substantially flush with the ceiling; four spring clips,

each clip having a base, an arm extending outwardly from the base and a finger extending angularly. from the end of the arm; means within said box to mount the base of each clip on the box with the arm'of eachclip extending outwardly over the ceiling and with the finger projecting generally normal to the ceiling; said clips being positioned with said fingers defining a rectangle spaced outwardly from said open end; and a plastic diffuser having a peripheral flange with an inner side of the shape of said rectangle, said flange being generally parallel to said fingers and engaging each of said clips to hold said flange against the celing about the open end of the box.

4. A recessed light fixture for mounting in a ceiling or the like, said fixture comprising: a box with an open end and having means to mount the box with the open end substantially flush with the ceiling; a plurality of spring clips each having a base, an arm extending outwardly from the base and a finger extending angularly from the end of the arm; means within said box to engage said base of each clip and position the clip with the arm ex tending outwardly over the ceiling with the finger projecting from the arm towards the ceiling, said means permitting said clip to be moved along a line generally normal to said ceiling to bring the extending end of the finger against the ceiling, said clips being positioned to define a geometric figure about said open end; and a diffuser having a closed end with peripheral flange thereabout, said flange engaging each of said clips to hold said diffuser against the ceiling about the open end of the box.

5. A recessed light fixture for mounting in a ceiling or the like, said fixture comprising: a rectangular box having four sides defining four corners and an open end to be positioned with-the four corners of'the box generally normal to the ceiling and with the open end generally parallel thereto; four spring clips each including an arm, a base extending in one direction from one end of the arm and a finger extending in the same general direction from the other end of the arm; means in each corner of the box forming a way in'each corner parallel to the corner to receive and frictionally engage the base of a clip while permitting the base to be moved longitudinally of said way, said way positioning said clip with the arm extending at an angle of about 135 from each of the two sides of each corner whereby the four fingers define a rectangle about saidopen end; and a diffuser having a rectangular flange of the size of said rectangle, said difiuser engaging said clips.

6. A recessed light fixture for mounting in a ceiling or the like, said fixture comprising: a rectangular box having four sides defining four corners and an open end to be positioned with the four corners of the box generally normal to the ceiling and with the open end generally parallel thereto; four spring clips each including an arm, a base extending in one direction from one end of the arm and a finger extending in the same general direction from the other end of the arm; means in each corner of the box forming a way in each corner parallel to the corner to receive and frictionally engage the base of a clip while permitting the base to be moved longitudinally of said way, the base of each clip being insertable in a way in two positions, one position at which'the arm extends within the space defined by said sides and the other position at which the arm extends outwardly of said space at an angle of about 135 from each of the two sides defining the corner in which the way is located whereby the four fingers define a rectangle about said open end; and a diifuser having a rectangular flange of the size of said rectangle, said diflfuser engaging said clips.

7. A recessed light fixture for mounting in a ceiling or the like, said fixture comprising: a rectangular box having four sides defining four corners and an open end to be positioned with the four corners of the box generally normal to the ceiling and with the openend generally parallel thereto; means in each corner of said box forming an elongated slot parallel to the two sides at said corner, one cross-sectional dimension of said slot as measured parallel to one of said sides being substantially larger than the second cross-sectional dimension as measured parallel to the other of said sides at the corner; four spring wire clips, the cross-sectional dimension of said wire being slightly smaller than said second cross-sectional dimension, each clip having an elongated base receivable in said slot with said base having several bends therein in the plane of said one dimension and giving said base a width in said plane of approximately equal size to said one dimension whereby said base will be frictionally engaged in said slot with the base in a fixed angular position with respect to the two sides between which the slot is located, each clip having an arm extending outwardly from said base with the extending ends of said arms defining a rectangle, engaging 'means on the outstanding end of each arm; and a plastic difiuser having a peripheral flange of the shape of said rectangle, said flange being generally parallel to said sides, positioned about said open end and engaging said engaging means to hold the diffuser in place. 7

- 8. A recessed light fixture for mounting in a ceiling or the like, said fixture comprising: a rectangular box having four sides defining four corners and an open end to be positioned with the four corners of the box generally normal to the ceiling and with the open end generally parallel thereto, said box forming four ways, one at each corner of the box between the two adjacent sides and parallel to the corner, each way being defined by an inwardly bent tab on the end of one of the sides at the corner and the adjacent side at the corner and a flange extending from said adjacent side about said'one side; four spring wire clips, each clip having an elongated base receivable in one of said ways respectively, the base of each clip being insertable in a way in two positions, one position at which the arm extends Within the space defined by said sides and the other position at whichthe arm extends outwardly of said space at an angle of about from each ofthe two sides defining the corner in which the way is locatedwhereby the four fingers define a rectangle about said open end; and a diffuser having a rectangular flange of thesize of saidrectangle, said diffuser engaging said clips.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,504,995 Lyon Apr. 25, 1950 2,587,423 Young Feb. 26, 1952 2,802,933 Broadwin Aug. 13, 1957 2,826,684 Baker Mar. 11, 1958 2,923,429 Schneider Feb. 2, 1960 

